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C. FOSS ET AL Dec. 13, 1927. c

ROTARY VALVE 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Original Filed Nov. 3. 1924 INVEN IOR IIHII ATTORNEYS I) 13 1 c. c. FOSS r AL ROTARY VALVE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Original Filed Nov. 1 1924 n'l lil cwistw i i w $0151.15 w. melloavck ATTORNEYS Reiasued Dec. 13, 1927.

UNITED STATES Re. 16, 816 PATENT OFFICE.

f cgmermiv o. ross, or PINECASTLE, FLORIDA, AND DOUGLAS D. or. LOACH, or savammn, ononsm, assrenons TO FOSS-DE LOACH COMPANY, or SAVANNAH, GEORGIA, A. coaronx'rrozv or GEORGIA.

ROTARY VALVE.

Original 80. 1,576,591, dated March 16, 1926, Serial No. 749,728, filed fiovember 13, 1924. Application for reissue filed November 2, 1927. Serial No. 230,669. 1

Our invention relates to improvements in rotary valves, more particularly to rotary valves for internal combustion engines, and it consists in the combinations, construct-ions and arrangements herein described and claimed. v

An object of the invention is to provide a reliable and efiicient rotary valve construction which will afford facilities for controlling the admission of fluid fuel to one or more cylinders of the internal combustion en inc and the exhaust from the cylinders. .further ob1ect of the invention is to provide a valve construction of the character described which when applied to a multi-cylinder internal combustion engine controls the admission of fuel to the respec tive cylinders and the exhaust therefrom so that both the admission of fuel to the reapective cylinders and the exhaust there from occur in timed sequence.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a rotary valve construction having a valve seat comprising a plurality of sections movable relatively in respect to one another andto the rotary valve to compensate lfor wear on the relatively moving sur' faces of the valve seat and the valve .to-

other with means acting automatically on Ehe relatively movable sections of the valve seat to adjust the position of such sections in respect to one another to compensate for such wear. i

A still further object of the invention is to providea rotary valve construction of the character described which has. means for conducting lubricant to the relatively movin surfaces of the valve construction.

her objects and advantages will be apparent from the following description, con sidered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, 111 which:

Figure 1 is a view, mainly in vertical section, andpartly in side elevation, showing a halve construct-ion embodying the inventionoperatively applied to a multi-cylinder internal combustion engine, only portions oi the latter being illustrated,

---Figure 2 is a side elevationof the rotary valve member of the device,

Figure 3 is a transverse vertical section through the structure exhibited in Figure l, i

' pair of cylinders the view being taken through one of the cylinders of the engine,

Figure 4 is a perspective view of a portion of the rotary valve member, and

Figure 5 is a horizontal section through a fragmentary portion of the engine block, looking down at the portion of the cover member which overlies one of the cylinders of the engine, parts of the valve construction being omitted. I

' In Figure 1, the numeral 1 designates an engine block which is formed to provide a plurality of vertically disposed cylinders 2 and a space 3 into which the bores of the cylinders open at their upper ends. As best seen in Figure 3, the wldth of the space 3 is greater than the diameter of each of the cylinders 2 so that a air of shoulders as indicated at 4 are provided at opposite sides of the upper end of each of the cylinders, these shoulders constituting portions of the bottom wall 5 of the space 3. Both the bores of the cylinders 2 are water-jacketed as clearly shown in Figures 1 and 3 and as is usual in internal combustion engines.

The bores of the cylinders 2 are covered at their upper ends by a Water-jacketed cylinder cover 6 which rests upon the bottom of the space 3 and may beattached to the bottom wall of the space 3 by cap bolts 7 or other fastening devices.

The portion of the cylinder cover 6 which overlies the bore of the cylinder is formed to provide an upstanding portion 8 which is circular in horizontal sectional contour and is enclosed at its upper end. A continuous rib consisting of opposite arcuate portions 9 connected by straight parallel portions 10 is upstanding from the top wall of the portion 8 which otherwise is flat. A passages 11 and 12 respectively open in spaced apart relation through the top of the extension 8 within the. space which is outlined by thecontinuous rib. The passa cs 11 and 12 converge toward their lower on s and join each'other to provide a common opening indicated at 13 through the bottom wall of the portion of the'cylinder cover 6 which overlies the bore of one of the communication with the bore of the cylinder. The space 3 within the engine block is 2, the'opening 13 being in open- 1 bottom wall of each pendant portion 16is provided with a central cavity 17 and with a depending continuous rib 18 which preferably is IeCtly above and similar to the upstanding .rib on the underlying upstanding portion 8 of the cylinder cover. Except for'the cavity 17 and the rib 18 the lower surface of the depending portion 16 is fiat and horizontal. v

. A pair of ducts 19 and 20 extend ob- I liquely through each pendant portion 16 of the top'cover. Theducts 19 and 20 open at their lower ends through the bottom wall of the pendant portion 16 between the rib 18 and the central cavity 17 and at opposite sides, of the latter. The duct 19 opens at its upper and through the top wall of the top cover 14 into a conduit 21 which is attached' to the cover 14 while the duct ,20

e at its upper end into a conduit 22 fi l1 also, is attached to the top cover 14. It is to beobserved at this point that the duct 19 opens at its lower end in confront mg relation to the upper end of the passage 11 while the duct 20 is similarly located in res ct to the upperendiof the duct 12.

means for controlling communication between the duct 20-and the passage 12 and between the duct 19 and the passagell will now be described. Such means comprises a pair of relatively movable upper and lower valve seat members indicated respectively at 23nd 24: and located between each pair of vertically aligned sections 16 and 8 or in other words over each'cylinder 2. The upr valve seat member 23 comprises a block iving a cavity 25 in thelower face of the central rtion thereof, thecavity 25 being coneavey carved in cross sectional contour for a purpose to be presently set out. The block of the upper valve seat member is novided with a central upstanding guide ug:26 adapted to enter the reces or, socket 1-7 and with a continuousgroove 27 for the reception of the rib 18.' The block of the upper valve seat member isprovided withan upstandingmarginal extension of oylindru cal'fomnwhich is indicated at 28: andwhich receives the pendantuverly'ing portion 14$ of the topicoiter ofthe en vblock and is in sliding: contact with sa-i portion 16: Packing rin 29 which are received in periphe erali vesgflizr the-pendant portion 16 are the corresponding upper held therein b the overlapping cylindrical tion which overlies one of the extensions 8 and has a recess 32 in its upper face directly beneath the cavity 25 of the corresponding upper valve seat member and also has a continuous groove 36 in its lower face for the reception of the upstanding rib 10 on the underlying portion 8 vof the cylinder cover.

The cavity 32 is concavely curved in cross sectional contourand is of the same size and shape as the overlying cavity 25,. A cylindrical marginalextension 34 which depends from-the block portion of the lower valve seatvmember overlaps the. upstandi portion 8 and is in slidingcontact with the latter. The cylindrical portion 34 retains in place. packing rings 35 which are received in peripheral grooves in the encircled portion 8. A shaft 36' is journaled at intervals along its length in horizontally aligned bearings 37 at the upper ends of supports 38 which are upstanding from the bottom of the space 3 within the latter, the shaft extending longitudinally of the space 3 and being provided with an enlarged cylindrical portion 39 for each pairof valve seat me'mbers 23 and 24 and therefore for each cylinder 2. Each enlarged valve (portion 39 is disposed between eorrespon ing upper and lower valve seat members and is partially received in the cavities 25 and 32 of such valve seat members the length of the enlargement 39- being slightly less than the length of the caviwall of the enlargement corresponding to the transverse curvature of the bottom wall of the cavities 25v and 32. Corresponding upper and lower valve seat members 23 and 24 are continuously held in close contact with the enlargement 39 which extends therebetween by a. pair of tension springs 40 which connect the block portionsof c orre sponding upper and lower valve seat members; It should be observed at this point ties 25 and 32. and the curvature of the vouter i that the'block portion of each. lower valve 7 seat member has a passage 41 which is in line with the pasage 31 of thecorrespondmg upper valve seat member; and a passage 42 which is in line with the passage 30 of valve: seat member and that each enlargement 39 is provided with a passage 43 which extends diametri eally therethrough and preferably correi sponds in cross sectional contour and area with each of the passages 30, 31, 41 and 42. The enlargement 39 is preferably hollowed out for the sake of likeness except for the walls of the passage 43, leaving webs 44 which stay the walls of the passage43 to the walls of the cylindrical enlargement and to the adjacent portion of the shaft 36.

From the foregoing description, it will be manifest that the enlargement 39 constitutes a valve for controlling passage of fluid between the aligned passages 31 and 41 and t between the aligned passages 30 and 42. The shaft 36 is provided with an axial bore in 45 through which a suitable lubricant maybe forced in any suitable known manner. Lateral assages 46 extend from.the bore 45 radia y throu h the shaft 36 at intervals along the lengt of the shaft and still'other passages 47 extend obliquely to the bore 45 throu h the web portions 44 of the valves M 29. Ibo pipe 48 for conducting lubricant f" has branches 49 adapted to discharge against J the periphery of the enlargements 39 and has other branches 50 which lead to the bearings 37. The shaft 36 is provided at one of its ends with a worm gear 51 in mesh with a a worm 52 on a rotating part 53 of the engine. 3" From the foregoing description of the :jf; thereof may be readily understood. In acff' tual ractice, one of the conduits 21 or 22 i is a ranch of the intake manifold and the other conduit is a branch of the exhaust manifold for the en ine. A carbureted mixture passes throug the intake manifold along one of the branches 21 or 22 through one of the passages 19 or and the aligned passage or 31 in the upper valve seat member for each cylinder and through the 'valve 39 for that cylinder when the passage 43 of that particular valve is in line with the passage 30 or 31 then through one of the passages 41 or 42 and the aligned passage 12 or 11 and opening 13 into the cylinder. After combustion has taken place in the cylinders, the exhaust gas .will pass through j the passage 12 or 11 and the passage 41 or 42 and through one of the passages 3019 or 31-20 into the conduit 21 or 22, whichever is a branch of the exhaust manifold. It will be observed by referring to Figure 2 that the passages 43 of the respective valves 39 are spaced circumferentially of the shaft so that a carbureted mixture will be admitted to each cylinder at a'time other than that at which the carbureted mixture is admitted to the remaining cylinders and that the exhaust from each cylinder' will take place at a time other than that at which the exhaust will take lace from the remaining cylinders. Combustion therefor may take place in the respective cylinders in timed sequence the shaft is rotated by motion impartsate for the wear.

various parts of the device, the operation ed thereto from a rotating part of the enme.

Should wear take place on the contiguous surfaces of one of the valves 39 and the valve members which are associated therewith, the springs 40 which connedt said valve members will function to draw the valve members toward each other to compen- The means hereinbefore described for conducting lubricant to the relatively moving surfaces of the valve constructions insures easy rotation of the valves with but very little wear on the relatively moving parts of the device.

We claim:

1. In an internal combustion engine, an engine block having a cylinder bore and a space above said bore, a cylinder cover having an extension upstanding. therefrom, a

"cover for the space above said cylinder bore,

said last named cover having a portion depending therefrom and overlying said upstanding extension, a lower valve seatmember supported on said upstanding extension and movable vertically, an upper valve seat member engaged with said depending portion of the second cover, and a rotary valve supported between said valve seat members, said valve having a transverse passage therethrough.

2. In'an internal combustion engine, an

space above said bore, a cylinder cover havmg an extension upstanding therefrom, a

cover for the space above said cylinder here,

said last named cover having a portion depending therefrom and overlying said upstanding extension, a lower valve seat member supported on said upstanding extension and movable vertically, an upper valve seat member slidably engaged with said depending portion of the second cover, a rotary valve supported between said valve seat members, said valve having a transverse passage therethrough, each of said valve seat members and the adjacent cover having a pair of spaced passages therethrough, the passages in the valve seat members being aligned with the corresponding passages in the adjacent cover and each passage in the valve seat members being adapted to register with each end of the passage in the valve 'during each rotation of the latter.

3. In an internal combustion engine, an engine block having a cylinder bore and a engine block having a'cylinder bore and a space above said bore, a cylinder cover havnil ,III

valve having a transverse passage there through, and packing means between each valve seat member and the adjacent extension to one of said covers.

4. In an internal oombustion'engine, an engine block having a cylinder bore and a space above said bore, acylinder cover having an extension upstandi therefrom, a

cover for the space above sai cylinder bore, 7 a portion de-' space above said bone; a cylinder cover having an--extensinn upstanding therefrom, a V

cover for the space above said cylinder bore,

said last named cover having a portion depending therefrom and overlying said upstanding extension, 11 lower valve seat member supported on said upstanding extension and movable vertically, an upper valve seat member slidably engaged with said depending portion of the second c ver, a rotary valve supported between said valve seat members, said valve having a transverse passage therethrough, and tension spring means connecting said valve seat members, each of said valve seat members and the adjacent cover having a pair of spaced passages there through, the passages in thevalve seat members being alined with the vcorresponding passages in the adjacent cover and each passage in the valve seat members being adapted to register with each end of the passage in the valve during each rotation of the latter.

Intestimony whereof we aflix our signatures.

CHRISTIAN 0. Foss. DOUGLAS 1). DE LOACH. 

